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Mom always made these cookie bars at Christmastime. She knew I loved them and I don’t remember her making them any other time of the year. I really look forward to eating them each year. – Rick Polley, Manager/Field Services

My sister and I started making these cookies in our early teens. We made them every year until I moved out of state and got married. We would spend an afternoon rolling out the dough and carefully decorating gingerbread men, women, Christmas trees, stars, etc. with colored sugars, nuts and miniature chocolate chips. One year […]

My children (and now grandchildren) enjoy cutting these out and decorating them. From the time they were little, we would take a day to make these special cookies. We would use everything from colored sugars and sprinkles to forming different decorations out of Starburst candies. – Valerie Cheatham, Assistant Editor, Illinois Country Living

My Dad and I shared a love of chocolate. Every year at Christmas he would make several batches of fudge. A lot of it was given away to neighbors, friends and family as gifts, but the rest was fair game. I used to love watching Dad make it and hung around to make sure I […]

My Grandma Barb’s father emigrated from Greece in 1909, and she is half-Greek. As I grew up, one of my favorite foods at Christmas time, and something I still look forward to today, are Grandma’s Greek butter “Crescent Cookies.” – Chris Reynolds, Coordinator of Web Services/Graphic Designer

These molasses cookies were the traditional Wood family (our dad’s mom’s) cookie, made with one pint of lard and rolled out and cut with a round cookie cutter. Our mother, Ruth, adapted the recipe to make it easier and healthier. She used half the nuts and raisins the original recipe called for and also used […]

These simple treats are what I always look forward to making with my mom and sister during the holidays. And, I sample many during the process! – Amy McDaniels, Administrative Assistant/Digital Communications Coordinator

As the bright sun of a perfect late summer day fades to shades of deep pastel, it is show time at the Southern Illinois Opry in Herrin. Local band Skylyne Drive is on stage, and there is energy in the air that can only be fueled by the presence of live music. The focus of […]